Councillor Benson warned that NAGs were in danger of becoming a dying breed due to the dwindling numbers of people attending from outside of the council, police and authorities.

“In some parts of the town NAGs are clearly struggling to attract and retain members as they have no budget to publicise their activities,” she said.

“Residents I speak to are often not aware of when meetings are taking place in their area or what efforts are being put in place to tackle crime problems.

"Without the genuine participation of local people, Neighbourhood Policing will not adequately reflect the crime concerns of communities, which it was originally set up to do.

“Some police forces have given NAGs a discretionary budget of £200 to allow them to keep the local community informed and I think this is something that needs to be looked at.”

She added: “Many NAGs desperately need financial support and I think they are in danger of becoming little more than just a fad if something isn’t done.”

Responding to the councillor’s plea Superintendent Steve Thwaites, the Reading Local Police Area Commander, said it was a realistic option for Thames Valley Police.

He said: “Introducing a budget for NAGs is certainly something we are looking at, but I can’t envisage it happening before the end of the financial year.

“Obviously there are many partners involved such as Reading Borough Council and crime reduction partnerships so it’s not just something for Thames Valley Police.”

Speaking about the success of the groups in Reading, Supt Thwaites said: “Some are working extremely well whereas others are relatively new.

“However, by the end of March, we are hoping to have held a meeting for all NAG members across Reading to share their views on best practice to help each other.”

Chair of the Lower Caversham NAG Jacquie Allan also believed the NAGs needed to be re-structured to keep them working.

“We all agree that if we can help reduce crime and the fear of crime then it is worth doing and

I think a public meeting for NAGs would be a good idea,” she said.

“Sadly we don’t have a budget to produce information on meetings and publicise the good work being done. We often rely on our own members to print newsletters at their own expense, but it shouldn’t have to be like that.”